The American Transportation Research Institute released its 2026 Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking on July 15, and the headline number is one every fleet owner should commit to memory: it cost an average of $2.336 per mile to operate a truck in 2025. That is the highest figure in the report's history, up 3.4% from 2024 — and with fuel excluded, costs rose even faster, climbing 4.2% to $1.854 per mile.
The report, built from confidential financial data submitted by carriers of every size, is the industry's standard benchmarking tool. This year's edition tells a clear story: 2025 was the third year of the freight recession, rates stayed flat, costs kept climbing — and the carriers that survived did it by getting disciplined about every line item on the P&L. That discipline is now paying off as 2026 rates move sharply higher.
Where the Money Went in 2025
Costs rose in every major category, but a few stood out well above the 2.7% consumer inflation rate:
- Tolls — up 13.2%, the fastest-growing line item
- Repair and maintenance — up 8.6%, from 19.8 to 21.5 cents per mile
- Driver benefits — up 6.6%, as health coverage costs accelerated
- Tires — up 6.4%, from 4.7 to 5.0 cents per mile
- Truck and trailer payments — up 1.4 cents to 40.4 cents per mile
- Insurance — up 3.9% to 10.6 cents per mile
Driver wages, by contrast, grew just 2.5% — below inflation for the second consecutive year. Sign-on and retention bonuses shrank, while safety and fuel-economy bonuses grew, a sign that fleets are shifting driver pay toward performance. Notably, driver turnover fell to 44.2% from 48%, suggesting the softer labor market helped carriers hold onto good drivers without bidding wars.
Margins Were Thin — and Fleets Responded
The profitability picture explains why capacity has been leaving the market. Truckload and refrigerated carriers posted operating margins below 1% in 2025, and flatbed carriers ran a slight operating loss of -0.5%. Tank carriers, at 4%, were among the few bright spots.
Carriers responded with the deepest cost-cutting of the downturn: truck counts fell 2.4% — the largest capacity reduction since the freight recession began in 2022 — an average of 10% of trucks sat unseated, and non-driver staffing was cut 7.8%. That shrinking capacity is precisely what set the stage for this year's rate recovery, with spot rates now running 40% or more above year-ago levels across all three major equipment types.
"Freight rates are finally turning a corner in 2026, but the acceleration of costs means fleets must continue aggressive cost discipline," said Chad Marsilio, chief operating officer of PGT Trucking.
What This Means for Fleet Owners
The gap between what a truck earns and what it costs to run is where every trucking business lives, and both sides of that equation are moving at once. Rates are rising faster than costs for the first time in four years — but only carriers who actually know their numbers can capture the difference. ATRI's $2.336 per mile is the industry average; your own cost per mile is the number that tells you which loads build your business and which ones quietly drain it.
The cost breakdown also carries a clear equipment message. Repair and maintenance was the biggest cost jump a fleet can directly control — and it lands hardest on aging trucks running past their service sweet spot. We've seen this pattern before: when R&M spend and downtime start compounding, a newer truck with a predictable fixed payment often costs less per mile than the "paid-off" truck it replaces. With 2026 build slots full and pre-EPA-2027 equipment pricing still available, the window to refresh at today's prices is real but not indefinite.
For well-positioned carriers, the playbook coming out of this report is straightforward:
- Benchmark your cost per mile against the $2.336 industry average — and reprice or drop freight that doesn't clear it
- Attack repair and maintenance — the fastest-rising controllable cost — by evaluating whether aging units have crossed the replace-versus-repair line
- Lock in fixed financing costs while rates climb, converting an unpredictable expense curve into a known monthly number
- Put trucks to work now, while spot rates sit at multi-year highs and capacity remains tight
After three years of grinding cost discipline, the market is finally rewarding carriers who stayed sharp. The fleets that pair rising revenue per mile with a firm grip on cost per mile will book the strongest margins this industry has seen since 2021.